It was our third day there. The wind was so strong it was grabbing handfuls of sand and throwing them at our legs and face. My skin stung as the sand pelted my legs. My girls have heard me say it many times before. I can almost feel them roll their eyes as I begin my famous phrase. "If you wait for a perfect day in Nebraska, you will always be waiting.." This trip was like many previous Nebraska camping trips. We would endure everything that Nebraska could throw at us on this trip. The March winds, the cool nights of April, the heat and humidity of July and the monsoon rains of...well that was a new one for us, but I can tell you, we endured it. Camping on the Niobrara wasn't the hand we asked for, but the hand we were dealt. We had originally planned a trip to the Bahamas. It was to be our first international trip as a family, but that was cancelled due to the virus. We knew what we were getting into. The Niobrara is one of our favorite places to camp. We enjoy canoeing and kayaking the river. There is so much to see on the Niobrara. It truly is a Nebraska treasure. I think many people overlook the beauty of the river and the valley. A common sight on the river during the hot summer months are hoards of sun burned drunks, tipping their beers high into the sky getting the last refreshing sip out of the can laughing, giggling and carrying on and they truly miss the natural beauty that the river has to offer...
The Niobrara is the confluence of 5 different ecosystems. The grasses of the Mixed and Sandhills Prairie; the ponderosa pine of the Rocky Mountain Coniferous Forest; elms, oaks and ashes of the Eastern Deciduous Forest and finally my favorite; the paper birch, moss and bogs of the Northern Boreal Forest. The valley can be home to 92 species of butterflies and my girls favorite are the turtles including the big snapping turtles and the spiny softshell turtles that can be found sunning themselves on the banks of the river.
We arrived at our campsite on a Friday. A hot and humid day, I instantly went to work setting up the canvas tent. We had 6 days worth of food packed, kayaks to run the river, tubes for short lazy runs and marshmallows for smores. We got camp setup, taco tots cooked in the dutch oven and just enough time to enjoy a beautiful sunset and off to bed. This wasn't our rodeo when it comes to camping on the Niobrara. I can tell you right now, the raccoons in this valley are different. They are a superior breed of animal. They have been trained and groomed for generations to know every trick on how to pillage and plunder a campsite. Decades of drunken passed out tubers have fed these animals and transformed them into their own species of "coons". I am methodical when it comes to securing a campsite. All coolers are ratchet strapped shut. All dry tote storage is pushed under picnic table benches and objects are wedged between the seat and the lid preventing the lid from coming off. Don't even think about leaving something on top of the tables because these devilish little monsters know that anything pushed off the table usually breaks open for an easy meal. Its similar to securing Fort Knox... Once everything had been secured, in the tent we go for the night.
It's 12 a.m. and I feel a nudge. "They are here"..Liz says. I could hear them with their purr like noises talking between one another..probably laying claim to the several plastic boxes that held all treasures that a hungry coon could hope for. I rolled over and told Liz there was nothing that they could get into, just go back to sleep. The plastic of the case of water rattled...nothing there.. I could hear the thunk of them trying to lift the top of the ratchet strapped cooler lids. That was a dead end, then on to the dry tote storage. Thunk, thunk, thunk. The lid would not pop off. Thunk... thunk, thunk.. Persistent little bastard. Thunk, thunk... thunk.. I think the thought that they could open the lid just a bit was appealing. Thunk, thunk thunk.. "I don't think I can listen to this much more.." Liz says with a big huff. Thunk, thunk, thunk and then a fight breaks out. Evidently a more dominant raccoon was trying to lay claim to the prize. A loud yowl followed and several more pursued. "You have got to be frickin kidding me.." Liz says. I finally get up, unzip the tent door as fast as I can to follow it with a series of my best imitated ferocious dog barks. I begin to pick up sticks and throw them into the weeds, doing my best to scare the little bastards off. I pack as many of the totes that I can in the cab of the pickup to just rid ourselves of the tantalizing appeal of free food. As I am doing so, a raccoon is in the tree, growling at me...
The next day was our first day of kayaking. I think everyone was excited. It was a beautiful day. A few clouds in the sky to hide the sun and the heat of the upcoming summer. The girls were tentative. They were excited to catch a glimpse of the spiny softshell turtles sun bathing on the north facing slopes of the river. For me, this was about many things. A chance for me to connect with nature, a learning opportunity for my girls and time with the family. They needed the opportunity to build confidence, to learn that everything has its place in nature... There was plenty of water in the Niobrara and the current was fast and swift.
On Sunday, the winds came. Nebraska is quite often confused with its seasons. It seems like at any given time of the year, you always have two seasons fighting for its dominance. Currently it is spring and summer battling over who gets Nebraska. As spring dominates with its cool temperatures, summer begins to build its forces in the form of wind to blow spring out of its way and blanket the state with blustery hot temperatures. Spring retreats back north to ask winter for its support only to come back and blow summer back out of its way. From the time we woke up, the blustery hot winds were picking up dust and fighting spring with a vengeance. We did our best to take it in stride. We decided Sunday was to be a day of waterfalls. In the morning, we took a hike over to Fort Falls and explored the trees and fauna of the Niobrara. That afternoon, we snuck off to a hidden set of falls not far off the river. The afternoon heat set in, the horizon was brown with the dust and sand from the nearby prairie and we needed to retreat from the battle. This set of waterfalls has a pool surrounding the falls. We basked and laid in its cool waters for hours enjoying nature's closest version to air conditioning. The falls are hidden and Addison described them as majestic, magical and possibly a scene taken from the Shire. Our conversation was of the simple things in life. How the sun and mist shined on the gigantic green leaves of the Cow Parsnip that grew on the banks. We talked about how fine the sand was and how cool the waters were. We spoke of the indigenous people that lived along the banks of the river and about how life may have been for them. We shared personal stories of things going on in our lives. We found ourselves our own Eden to escape to for the afternoon. Magical it was....
That night was not suitable for sleep. Liz and I laid on top of the covers due to the heat. The wind was still blowing and the heat had definitely settled in. Summer had won the battle. Liz tossed and turned trying to find a comfortable position. The heat and wind was not conducive for sleep. I laid there with a smile...happily miserable thinking about the day we had.
Monday was another day kayaking the river. The day was warm and the clouds had moved in. You knew rain was on its way. Just another war of the seasons and Nebraska was its battle grounds. We were all a little more quiet on this trip. Not sure if it was due to the lack of the sleep from the night before or if the wonders of the Niobrara were losing their appeal. We picked out birds along the banks, looked for our turtles and even found some frogs attentively watching our every move. The bald eagles were flying and even had one fly just a few feet overhead. This was truly a treat and brought magic back to our trip.
Monday night brought the rains. This wasn't your typical Nebraska summer rain where the storm blows in, drops its rain, cools the air and moves back out again. This was rain described best by Forest Gump. It came down, it came sideways and it even rained up. The lightning struck so close that it seemed like daylight in the tent. The thunder boomed so loud that is rattled the ground and your chest. The rain hit the tent in tidal waves. It would rain and pound the canvas so hard you could barely hear yourself think. Once you thought it was gone, another tidal wave would crash down on the tent and start pounding away at the cloth. If things couldn't get any worse, two raccoons decided to yowl and growl trying to lay claim as to who owned the rights to pillage and plunder this campsite yet another night. "You have got to be kidding me!" Liz muttered under her breath to not wake the girls as they slept through the storm. I was startled at first by the coon fight, but rolled over, smiled and laughed as quietly as I could...I was still within arms reach of my wife.
Tuesday was our last full day of camping on the river. The day started with a magnificent sunrise. It gave hope for a beautiful day. The official report was 3 inches of rain the night before. After what we tried to sleep through, I could only concur. Wind and rain was again in the forecast for the day. Spring was back and it was going to be a chilly day. Everything was too wet to throw in the towel, pack up camp and lick our wounds on the 3 hour trip back home, so we planned a trip of sightseeing. We decided to drive to Norden Chute and show the girls an incredible water feature of the Niobrara River. The roads were mucky and wet with the rain. As we splashed through the muddy puddles, leftover remnants of the monsoon, my old pickup began to cough and sputter, but kept chugging along. Liz looked at me and shook her head after all we had endured. The heat, the winds, the monsoons and now car troubles. "Something is getting wet." I assured her with a smile. "We will be fine once it dries out." When it rains lemons, you only have one choice and that is to make lemonade. The girls were impressed with Norden Chute. We then drove through the Fort Niobrara Wildlife Refuge and watched prairie dogs clean their den holes out again. We laughed as the dirt flew and one would dig and pack around his hole. We traveled on to the Cowboy Trail and walked across the old railway bridge, raining and the wind blowing in our faces. We returned back to camp in my sputtering old pickup with smiles on our faces. This day's lemonade was pretty good.
Wednesday we packed camp back up. Things were still wet from the rain. Mud was splattered on everything during the times that it rained up. We were happy. It was undeniably miserable at times, but I truly believe a bad day of camping is better than a good day of work. My advice is to take your kids camping. No, not in a camper with all the luxuries of home, but in a tent. Let them feel the heat of summer and hear the pitter patter of a hard rain on the tent. Let them find comfort in adverse conditions and understand how to make lemonade. It's these times they will remember when they are older and it is these times that will make them a better person later in life...
